Sheet feeding mechanism



lime y 3931., A. BROADMEYER 1,810,751

SHEET FEEDlNG MECHANISM original Filed p il, 28, 1926 4 Sheets-Sheet 1acmtmu June 16, 1931. A. BROADMEYER SHEET FEEDING MECHANISM OriginalFiled April 28, 1 926 4 she ts-s eet 2 oaafm en I June 16, 1931.

A. BROADMEYER 1,810,751

SHEET FEEDING MECHANISM Original Filed April 28, 1926 4 Sheets-Sheet I5Jvvuewfoz June 16, 1931. A. BROADMEYER SHEET FEEDING MECH ANI SMOriginal Filed April 2a, 1926 4 Sheets-Sheet '4 anouwq III Patented June16, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ALBERT BROADMEYER, OF HARRISBURG,PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE W. '0.

HICKOK MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, A COR-PORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA SHEET FEEDING MECHANISM Original applicationfiled April 28, 1926, Serial No. 105,174. Divided and this applicationfiled July 18,

1927. Serial The present invention relates to apparatus for feedingsheetsand the present appl cation is a required division of theapplication,

.Serial No. 105,174, filed April 28, 1926, on

which Letters Patent No. 1,7 16,948 dated June 11, 1929, have nowissued.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a removablepile supporting table, with means for effectively securing it in place,said means permitting the ready release of the table so that it canbereadily removed and replaced by another.

Another and important object is to provide novel mechanism for efiectinthe elevation of the pile support, said mec anism including the feedingdevice or devices as the controlling means for the elevating mechanism.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is an elevation of one side of the upper portion of the feeder,

Figure 2 is a view in elevation of a portion of the opposite side,

Figure 3 is a vertical'sectional View,

Figure 4 is a perspedtive view, diagrammatic in its character, showingthe mechanisms for swinging the suction rollers,

Figure 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of the elevating latch.

Figure 6 is a plan view of said latch.

Figure 7 is a detail rear face elevation of the device for controllingthe-position of the latch-governing track,

Figure 8 is a detail sectional view showing one of the mountings for thepile table and taken on the line 8-8 of Figure 2,-

Figure 9 is a similar view taken on the line 99 of Figure 2. i

In the embodiment disclosed, a frame 10 is provided, having verticalguide posts 11. Supporting bars 12 are provided with guide boxes 13slidably mounted on the posts 11. On these bars is a removable paperpile-holding table 14. This table is provided with end 45 cleats 15 thatrest upon inwardly extending brackets 16 carried by the boxes 13;Detachable pins 17, passing through ears 18 on the boxes 13 and engagingthe cleats 15", serve to hold the table in place. When the pins areremoved, the table can be detached. It is thus easy to remove an emptytableand replace it with a table on which the paper has 'already beenpiled.

The table is elevated and depressed by means of the usual verticalscrews 19, rotatably mounted between the guide posts 11 and engagingwith threaded boxes 20 carried by the supporting bars 12. An actuatingshaft 21, extending across the top of the machine and shown in Figure 3is geared in the usual manner, as illustrated at 22 to the verticalscrews 19, and is provided on one end with the usual ratchet wheel 23. Adriving shaft 24, carried by the frame, has an eccentric 25 operating ayoke 26 that is connected by a link 27 with a swinging arm 28 journaledon the shaft 21, anda pawl 29, pivoted between its ends, as shown at 30on the arm 28, is adapted to enga e the teeth of the ratchet wheel 23and e ect a step-by-step rotation thereof. As a consequence the shaft 21is turned, thereby turning the screws 19 and elevating the papersupporting table.

'For the purpose of delivering the sheets from the table, suctionrollers are employed, two being shown and designated 31. These rollersare carried on a shaft 32 j ournaled in the free ends of forwardlyextending crank arms 33 carried by a rock shaft 34. The crank arms arepreferably connected and braced by a tie rod 35. The drive shaft 24rotates each of the suction rollers through the medium of a sprocketchain 60, double sprocket wheels 61 on the rock shaft 34 and a sprocketchain 62 extending from the sprocket wheels 61 to the roller. Thesuction rolle'rs'31 are raised and lowered by swinging the rock shaft34, and to this end said rock shaft has fixed thereto an arm 36 having alink connection 37 with one arm frame ofthe machine, and having itsother arm 40 borne against by a cam 41 that is carried by the mam driveshaft 24. This main drive shaft is driven from any suitable source ofpower by changeable speed. gearing of well-known character, a portion ofwhich is shown at 43 in Figure 4.

One of the features of this invention is the provision of means, wherebythe elevating mechanism for the table is controlled by the feedingrollers or devices. The latch 29 has a tail piece 103 mounted'on thepivot 30, and having a shoulder 104 that abuts against a correspondingshoulder 105. This permits the tail piece to swing rearwardly andupwardly with respect to the latch 29. The lower end of the tail piececarries a roller 106 that runs on a curved track piece 107, the curve ofwhich has the axis of the shaft 21 as its center. This track piece ispivoted at its front end, as shown at 108 and has a cui ved bottombearing 109. The upper end of the curved edge 109 is provided witha'sharp shoulder or notch 109a. The curved bearing edge 109 is normallyengaged by a sharp shoulder 110 on the upper end of a supporting lever111, pivoted between its ends, as shown at 112. This supporting leverhas a pin 113 on its lower end that is engaged in a slot 114 of a link115, and the link is pivotally connected, as shown at 116 to a dependingarm 117, fast to the rock shaft 34, which carries the support for thesuction rolls.

Assuming the pile at the .proper level, the shoulder 110 is on thecurved surface 109. This supports the track piece 107 sufficiently highto maintain the latch 29 out of engagement with the teeth of the ratchetwheel 23, and consequently the elevating mechanism is inactive. When,however, the level of the pile descends low enough through the removalof the paper to cause the suction rolls to descend to a lower positionthan normal, obviously the arm 117 being moved rearwardly, will cause acorresponding movement of the link 115, swinging the lever 111 until theshoulder 110 passes from the edge 109 to a position beneath the notch109a, whereupon the tratk piece 107 will drop, allowing the latch 29-103to swing so that said latch will engage the teeth. The intermittentmovement of the arm 28 and ratchet wheel therefore will cause theelevation of the pile, and when the level returns to normal position thelever 111 swings back until its shoulder 110 is again on the bearingedge 109, whereupon the latch will be again held out of active position,The reason for having the tail piece 103 separate from the latch 29 isto permit this upward movement of the tail piece when the latch is inengagement with the ratchet wheel so that it will complete its movementbefore being disengaged. In order to throw the latch out of engagement acam 118 is journaled on the frame below the free end of the track pieceand is so arranged that upon being turned, it will elevate the saidtrack piece and thus permanently hold the latch 29 out of engagementwith the ratchet wheel 23, irrespective of the movement of the suctionroller.

From the foregoing, it is thought that the construction, operation andmany advantages of the herein described invention will be apparent tothose skilled in the art, with out further description, and it will beunderstood that various changes in the size, shape, proportion and minordetails of construction may be resorted to without departing from thespirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

What I claim, is:

1. In sheet feeding apparatus, the combination with a pile support andmechanism for elevating it, of a device having an individual movement ina direction for delivering sheets edgewise from the pile, and meanscontrolled by the sheet delivering device for controlling the operationof the pile support elevating mechanism.

2. In sheet feeding apparatus, the co1nbination with a pile support andmechanism for elevating it, of a rotary device also movable toward andfrom the top of the pile to remove the topmost sheets in an edgewisedirection therefrom, means for rotating the device, and means controlledby the amount of movement granted to the removing means by the sheetpile, to control the operation of the pile support elevating mechanism.

3. In sheet feeding apparatus, the combination with a pile support andmechanism for elevating it, including a ratchet wheel and a pawloperating on the ratchet wheel, a device movable in a direction forremoving sheets in an edgewise direction from the top of the pile saiddevice being additionally movable upwardly and downwardly above' thepile, and means operated by the sheet removing device in its movementtoward and from the pile for moving the pawl into and out of a positionto operate the ratchet wheel.

4. In sheet feeding apparatus, the combination with a pile support andmechanism for elevating it including a ratchet wheel and a pawloperating on the ratchet wheel, a sheet feeder for removing sheets fromthe top of the pile, a swinging support on which the feeder is rotatablymounted, means for rotating the feeder, and means governed by the extentof swinging movement of the support for moving the pawl into and out ofa position to operate the ratchet wheel.

5. In sheet feeding apparatus, the combination with a pile support andmechanism for elevating it, including a ratchet wheel and a pawloperating on the ratchet wheel, a sheet feeder for removing sheets in anedgewise direction from the top of the pile, a swinging support for thefeeder, a movable track member on which the pawl rides, and meansgoverned by the extent of swinging movement of the support to move thetrack member..

6. In sheet feeding apparatus, the combination with a pile support andmechanism for elevating it including a ratchet wheel and a pawloperating on the ratchet wheel, a sheet feeder for removing sheets fromthe top of the pile, a swinging support for the feeder, a movable trackmember on which the pawl rides, a movable support for the track memher,and means governed by the extent of swinging movement of the sheetfeeding support and connected to the track member support to move thesame.

7. In sheet feeding apparatus, the combination with a pile supportingtable, of means for elevating it, including a ratchet wheel and a pawlthat operates on the wheel, said pawl having a tail, a swinging trackelement on which the tail piece rides, a support for the track elementmovable to diflt'erent positions to hold the track element in differentposi tions, a rock shaft, a support mounted on and swinging with themovement of the rock shaft, a sheet removing device carried by thesupmounted on the guides and having their inner ends detachably engagedwith the table'to hold the table on the support.

In testimony whereof, I affix my signature.

ALBERT BROADMEYER.

port, a swinging arm mounted on the rock shaft, and a connection betweenthe swinging arm and the track element support.

8. In sheet feeding apparatus, the combi nation with a pile supportingtable, of means for elevating it, including a ratchet wheel and a pawlthat operates on the wheel, a track element on which a portion of thepawl is adapted ing a slidable engagement therewith for moving saidtrack element in a direction transverse to itself to and from a positionto hold the pawl out of operative engagement with the ratchet Wheel.

9. In sheet feeding apparatus, the combination with a pile supportingtable, of means for elevating it, including a ratchet wheel and a pawlthat operates on the wheel, a swinging carrier on which the pawl ispivoted, means for constantly swinging the carrier and the' pawl, atrack element on which a portion of the pawl is adapted to ride, andmeans inclu ing a pivotally mounted support having a sliding bearingagainst the track for moving said track element in a directiontransverse to itself to and from a ppsition to hold the pawl out ofoperative engagement with the ratchet wheel.

10. In sheet feeding apparatus, the combination with a pile supportingtable, of means for elevating the table, including a ratchet Wheel, aswinging carrier, a pawl pivoted between its ends on the carrier andhaving one end that operates on the ratchet wheel, its other end forminga tail piece, a vertically swinging curved track piece on which the tailpiece rides, and a swinging support beneath the track for holding it atdifferent elevations to ride, and a support for the track ha

